Modern warfare and law enforcement are characterized by an increasing need for up-to-date situational awareness. To track down, or to protect against, criminals, paramilitary forces or terrorists, law enforcement personnel and soldiers often have an immediate need for information about what is around the next corner or over the hill.
Hostile forces frequently hide themselves from view or exploit the local terrain to gain tactical advantage or escape from pursuers. In the presence of hostile forces, a simple brick wall, barbed wire fence, a body of water, buildings or even a large open area can be an insurmountable obstacle when time is of the essence and tactical resources are unavailable. An active or undetected threat can make the situation dangerous.
Visible indications, noises or predictable actions can reveal friendly forces and put them at risk. Stealth and surprise, however, are important elements that can give a tactical advantage. An UAV is an aircraft with no pilot on board (Also referred to herein as NUAV, where N is an abbreviation for Nano). UAVs can be remotely controlled (e.g. flown by a pilot/operator at a remote ground control station using a controller) or it can fly autonomously based on pre-programmed flight plans or more complex dynamic automation systems. An UAV may also be referred to as a drone. UAVs equipped with video cameras and positioning devices transmit live pictures and positioning information to the operator of the UAV and allow their operator to perform surveillance tasks and gather information from a safe position without exposing themselves.
An UAV may be operated and controlled using a remote control. Traditionally an UAV is operated by controlling such as e.g. a joystick. The joystick is configured to communicate with the UAV, i.e. to send control signal to the UAV using any suitable communication technology. Most joysticks are two-dimensional, having two axes of movement (similar to a mouse), but one and three-dimensional joysticks do exist. A joystick is generally configured so that moving the stick left or right signals movement of the UAV along the X axis, and moving it forward (up) or back (down) signals movement of the UAV along the Y axis. In joysticks that are configured for three-dimensional movement, twisting the stick left (counter-clockwise) or right (clockwise) signals movement of the UAV along the Z axis. In some types of remote controls one or more of these stick movements can be replaced by moving the remote control itself. These three axes—X, Y, and Z—are, in relation to an aircraft, roll, pitch, and yaw.
In addition to a joystick, the remote control configured to operate and control the UAV is usually also supplemented with a Graphical User Interface (GUI). A GUI may be a flight display providing e.g. different dynamic navigation information like speed, direction, waypoints etc. If the UAV is equipped with a camera streaming video or snapshots to the UAV base, these videos or snapshots should also be displayed through the GUI. Traditionally, video and snapshots are displayed on a screen separate from the navigation display, or in a separate part of the GUI display. UAV-kits adjusted for operations in the field have only limited space, since it should comprise both joystick, GUI and power supply as well as the UAVs themselves, preferably compactly stacked so that the personnel easily can carry it in the field during operation. It is therefore a need for a space efficient way of displaying both navigation information and images captured by the UAV without compromising usability and perception.